Just recently bought a new, shiny HP laptop. Now, I've got to figure out how to move all my email, plus all the accompanying folders, from the old HP laptop to the new HP laptop.

I've gone over some existing questions already posted about this, but they were all from years past, the last one from 2011.....and maybe in the 6 years since the last response there's been some changes. I've read I need to find the Profile folder to copy it, and am pretty sure I understand how to do that, but the steps get fuzzy after that.

I am running Win10, Update 1703, on both laptops, and have been using TB email on the old laptop for about 4 months. I downloaded and installed the latest version of TB a couple weeks ago on the new laptop and am receiving emails from my ISP server. If I need to uninstall TB on the new laptop for whatever reason, it's all good. I haven't been using TB on the new laptop long enough to save any important emails.

So, how crazy is it going to get to migrate all my email identities--I have 7 email addresses plus 4-5 dozen email storage folders--from the old laptop to the new one?

Rummaging around in C:// can be daunting, and if I have to go into the Registry, I'll most likely need to call in an in-home tech, unless the directions are really, really clear, and I can spend a couple days getting my courage up.

Before you do anything I suggest you run Thunderbird on the new PC, and use help -> troubleshooting information -> open folder to automatically open file explorer at the current profile. Write down that location in case you need to import some of the new mail you downloaded in the new profile, later on.

See http://kb.mozillazine.org/Move_to_a_new_PC . Its actually easy, just don't delete anything on the old PC though until you've verified everything has been successfully moved. If you've been using POP accounts configured to leave the original on the mail server you might not have to do anything about the new mail in the profile you had previously created on the new PC. See if it gets automatically downloaded. If not, see http://kb.mozillazine.org/Importing_folders for how to import mail folders from one profile (whose location you wrote down) to another (the new one created by restoring the backup).

tanstaafl wrote:Before you do anything I suggest you run Thunderbird on the new PC, and use help -> troubleshooting information -> open folder to automatically open file explorer at the current profile. Write down that location in case you need to import some of the new mail you downloaded in the new profile, later on.

See http://kb.mozillazine.org/Move_to_a_new_PC . Its actually easy, just don't delete anything on the old PC though until you've verified everything has been successfully moved. If you've been using POP accounts configured to leave the original on the mail server you might not have to do anything about the new mail in the profile you had previously created on the new PC. See if it gets automatically downloaded. If not, see http://kb.mozillazine.org/Importing_folders for how to import mail folders from one profile (whose location you wrote down) to another (the new one created by restoring the backup).

Sorry about not getting back here sooner. Have family coming to visit for Thanksgiving and just had so many things to get ready.....

Before we move forward on the original TB email folder problem, today I opened up TB and got some kind of TB screen which I don't understand. I don't know if it's trying to tell me to upgrade, or my last upgrade failed, or what the reason for the screen is.

1. That screen shot is showing the release note for Thunderbird 52.4.0 and it doesn't require that you do anything. If your installed version of Thunderbird is older than the current release version you can update if you choose but don't have to. Check the current version using menu path Help->About Thunderbird.

When composing a signature in the Control Panel, it's not noted colors aren't allowed. Maybe the option to add colors should be disabled in the signature section, yes? I mean, if the option to add colors to a signature is available but colors aren't allowed, shoulnd't that be noted somewhere?

OK, so under the Moving Folders link the instructions say, "This article gives step by step instructions for how to import folders from another profile for a new user who has never installed an extension."

I'm not a techie of any sort, and I don't understand what this instruction means when it says, "....how to import folders from another profile for a new user who has never installed an extension.

So, what does it mean when it says, ".....a new user who has never installed an extension?" What is an extension? Is Thunderbird an extension?

And, when I buy a new computer and start using it, am I, now, a new user?

As you can see, I'm simply not familiar with these kinds of terms or what they're referring to, and I'll bet the farm there are other home users who are reading this post who don't, either, and would be appreciative of a basic education. You IT tech people use this kind of language on an every day basis, but us home users don't. Or, at least, I don't, and we need help understanding the technical language before we even get to performing the steps.

The term extension refers to an add-on that is installed into Thunderbird to provide functionality or options not found in the basic program. For a novice user of Thunderbird, it would be better to work with the basic software before experimenting with the installation of any extensions. See this site for examples -- https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/

So, would the term "new user" refer to a person using Thunderbird for the first time?

OK, so moving forward on the instructions posted in the first reply for transferring email folders from the old laptop to the new laptop.

The first link given in that reply is.......Transferring data to a new profile - Thunderbird.....and it states....."See Move to a new PC or Moving your profile folder - Thunderbird if your profile is okay and you just want to move it."

So, I click on the link, "Move to a new PC", and it states...

1. The simplest solution if you're using Windows would be to use Mozbackup to backup the complete profile,

2. Copy the *.pcv file it creates to the new PC,

3. Install the Mozilla application and Mozbackup on the new PC,

4. And then use Mozbackup to restore the profile. Don't delete anything on your old PC until you've verified you can use the moved profile."

Here are my questions for steps 1 and 2....

1. Do I go to the old laptop, and download the Mobackup 1.5.2 Beta 1 software? And, in this Beta software download there will be instructions on how to copy the profile .pvc file into the Mozbackup 1.5.2 Beta 1 software?

a. I downloaded the Mozbackup 1.5.2 Beta 1 software just to see what it looked like, and when I clicked on the software to open the file, got this screen: How do you want to open this file? The options were Notepad or Find an App in the Store, and at the bottom of this screen there was a checked box which said--Always use this file to open .xpi files. What app do I want to use to open .xpi files?

2. The next step says to copy the .pvc file this creates to the new PC. How do I "copy the .pvc file this creates to the new PC?"

1. Do I go to the old laptop, and download the Mobackup 1.5.2 Beta 1 software?

Yes

And, in this Beta software download there will be instructions on how to copy the profile .pvc file into the Mozbackup 1.5.2 Beta 1 software?

No, the .PCV file is created by the MozBackup software when you run that to backup your profile.

a. I downloaded the Mozbackup 1.5.2 Beta 1 software just to see what it looked like, and when I clicked on the software to open the file, got this screen: How do you want to open this file? The options were Notepad or Find an App in the Store, and at the bottom of this screen there was a checked box which said--Always use this file to open .xpi files. What app do I want to use to open .xpi files?

If you downloaded MozBackup 1.5.2. Beta 1 from this URL and clicking on the "Download" link below the May 6, 2012 heading, you should have an .ZIP file, not .xpi files. Windows 10 should know how to deal with a ZIP file by opening and uncompresssing the contents, one file of which is an .exe (executable).

2. The next step says to copy the .pvc file this creates to the new PC. How do I "copy the .pvc file this creates to the new PC?"

In the same way you would copy any file from one computer to another: on a flash drive, using MS OneDrive cloud storage, or over a local area netword.

Wow, the language to recover all those dozens and dozens of email folders on the old laptop is so beyond anything I understand, I think it's probably best I simply change over to Outlook and get it over with, even tho I no longer have any trust left in the microsoft corporation.

If I'd have just gone with Outlook, maybe it would have been much easier to transfer those email folders from Windows Live email over to Outlook......I don't know. In any event, I need to think about these instructions for a bit to see if I can fully grasp what I'm being told. So, I won't be back in this thread until after the Holidays because there's just too much I have to do between now and the day after xmas, and working on this email folder problem just isn't one of them.

Thank you so much to those who came into this thread to help me. I do appreciate everything you've all done--you folx go above and beyond what's expected. I've always felt the tech support volunteers are the unsung heroes of the internet, because you really don't get much more than a thank you from those of us who don't know what we're doing and come to you for help.

In any event, I wish all of you Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year's. I'll work on these last instructions given me by Dan Raisch between Christmas and New Year's, when I have more time to think. If I'm able to figure them out, I'll be back, and most likely with questions....lol. If I can't figure out what's been explained to me, I won't be back because it will be clear the Thunderbird system just isn't the software for me.

1. Do I go to the old laptop, and download the Mobackup 1.5.2 Beta 1 software?

Yes

And, in this Beta software download there will be instructions on how to copy the profile .pvc file into the Mozbackup 1.5.2 Beta 1 software?

No, the .PCV file is created by the MozBackup software when you run that to backup your profile.

a. I downloaded the Mozbackup 1.5.2 Beta 1 software just to see what it looked like, and when I clicked on the software to open the file, got this screen: How do you want to open this file? The options were Notepad or Find an App in the Store, and at the bottom of this screen there was a checked box which said--Always use this file to open .xpi files. What app do I want to use to open .xpi files?

If you downloaded MozBackup 1.5.2. Beta 1 from this URL and clicking on the "Download" link below the May 6, 2012 heading, you should have an .ZIP file, not .xpi files. Windows 10 should know how to deal with a ZIP file by opening and uncompresssing the contents, one file of which is an .exe (executable).

2. The next step says to copy the .pvc file this creates to the new PC. How do I "copy the .pvc file this creates to the new PC?"

In the same way you would copy any file from one computer to another: on a flash drive, using MS OneDrive cloud storage, or over a local area netword.

Ok, I'm back, again. And, with a clearer head. Shouldn't have been trying to figure out this email problem right before the holidays with company coming.

Downloaded Mozbackup 1.5.2 on the old PC. Then, on old PC copied Mozbackup 1.5.2 and pasted it onto a flash drive.

Then, downloaded Mozbackup 1.5.2 on new PC and stuck in the flash drive with the Mozbackup 1.5.2 data on it from the old PC. I then clicked on my TB icon but got this error message: "Your Thunderbird profile cannot be loaded. It may be missing or inaccessible."

Not sure what this means. I do have TB program on my PC, so, don't know why TB isn't opening up. Appreciate any suggestions.